Wren, Whaley and Jaiswal victorious at Lowcountry Junior

Taking advantage of the last of three local tournaments to open the International Junior Golf Tour’s (IJGT) spring season, IJGA students competed in the Lowcountry Junior at Wexford Plantation on January 31-February 1, 2015. IJGA students finished first in each of the three divisions of the two-day, 36-hole event.

Coming off a second place finish in the Carolina Classic at Colleton River last weekend, Trey Wren was not to be defeated this weekend. Wren came from behind to earn the top spot in the Boys 15-19 Division of the Lowcountry Junior. The Suffolk, Va., native bore down in round two, knocking 15 strokes off his round one 86. He carded five birdies in round two en route to a 1-under 71. His second round score earned him the ClazicBelts Low Final Round Award, the award presented to the male and female junior to card the lowest score in the final round of the event.

Matt Cheng of Taipei, Taiwan, finished one stroke behind Wren with a tournament total of 158, good for second in the Boys 15-19 Division. He started the back nine off strong, making par on hole No. 10 and carding a birdie on the 11th hole on both days.

Armonk, N.Y., native Lee Hammerschmidt‘s round one score of 78 was a single stroke behind the division leader. He made par on the last four holes in round two to finish with an 82 on the day and a tournament total of 160, tying him for third in the Boys 15-19 Division. Hammerschmidt was particularly successful on the par-5 eighth hole, which he birdied twice.

Kelly Whaley of Farmington, Conn., was tied for the lead in the Girls Division after round one, but broke away from the pack in round two on the way to her third IJGT victory this season. She started the second day strong carding an eagle on the par-4 first hole before making par on the next five holes. She picked up birdies on holes No. 8, 12 and 17 and finished the day with a division-best 2-under 70, earning her the Clazic Belts Low Final Round Award.

Lita Huber of Montevideo, Uruguay, finished second in the Girls Division with a tournament total of 169. Huber had the longest bogey-free streak in her division, which came on holes No. 6 through 12 in round two.

Ayushmaan Jaiswal of Wesley Chapel, Fla., built off his round one lead to win the Boys 14 & Under Division with a 182 tournament total. Xiaofeng Hu of Qiang Dao, China, improved on his round one score by 12 strokes to finish second in the division.

Congratulations to all the IJGA students who participated in the Lowcountry Junior at Wexford Plantation!